They've been a lightning rod for criticism, but the City of Victoria's bike lanes have spurred a new restaurant to target cyclists.
Dobosala Cantina and Ride-Thru, an Indo-Pacific restaurant set to open on Pandora Avenue, says it will provide a take-out option for cyclists passing by on the Pandora bike lanes.
"I felt like, why not embrace the city's choices?" said owner and operator Kunal Ghose.
He said cyclists will be able to hop off their bike, place their order at a take-out window, pay and then pick up food at a second window. People on foot will also be able to order from the take-out window.
Ghose said he knows the bike lanes are a touchy issue in Victoria, but he fully supports them.
"Many, many years ago when I first started in kitchens it was to buy myself a bike," he said. "Now I'm making food for people on bikes to come up and hopefully create a destination spot."
He said as far as he knows, no other restaurant in Canada has offered a "ride-thru" for cyclists.
"People are pretty stumped by it initially but it's as simple as any other take-out window or kiosk," he said. "The menu's going to be designed for you to get your food right away."
As for Victoria's bike-riding mayor Lisa Helps, she endorsed the idea and hinted it may be a start of a trend.
"I think it's great. I don't see any problems with it," said Helps. "What's most interesting to me quite honestly is to see bike lanes stimulating economic development."
Ghose said the restaurant is set to open this March.
